Blinn to sign agreement with TEEX police academy

4/18/2007 12:00 AM

Blinn College and the Texas Engineering Extension Service will hold an official signing ceremony on April 25 to mark a second agreement to give students both college credit and hands-on experience in public service fields. The agreement allows Blinn criminal justice students to participate in TEEX's Central Texas Police Academy as a component of their associate in applied science degree or certificate.

The signing ceremony with Blinn President Dr. Donald Voelter and TEEX Interim Director Gary Sera will take place at 10 a.m. at the TEEX Public Safety & Security division in Building 7751 at the Texas A&M University - Riverside Campus on Highway 47 in Bryan.

The TEEX Police Academy faculty will provide classroom and hands-on field application and training experiences for qualified Blinn students. Under this agreement, students will have access to the 2,000-acre Riverside Campus for the practical field experiences they need to work as police officers. This includes access to a firing range, driving track, and residential prop houses that provide realistic scenarios.

"This partnership benefits both cadets attending the Central Texas Police Academy (CTPA) and Criminal Justice students currently enrolled in Blinn College," said TEEX program manager Cullen Grissom. "While CTPA cadets will receive college credit towards an Associate's Degree, Blinn students will benefit from practical hands-on training offered at the Texas A&M University - Riverside Campus. Bottom line, this is a win-win for everyone; most importantly, those citizens within the Brazos Valley whom these graduates will protect and serve."

Last year, Blinn and TEEX, a member of The Texas A&M University System, signed a similar agreement placing a semester at the Brayton Fire Training Field into the fire science certificate and degree curriculum.

"As in the case of the Fire Academy agreement, this agreement is advantageous for both organizations and, more importantly, should be of great benefit to the students enrolled and positively impact our community's safety and welfare," Blinn Technical and Workforce Education dean Guadalupe Reyes, Jr., said.

The police academy will encompass one of the four semesters in the AAS degree plan and one of two semesters in the certificate. The 17-week academy will cost $4,200. The other semesters will be charged on the regular Blinn tuition and fee schedule.

Recognized as the oldest statewide law enforcement extension training agency in Texas, TEEX's Central Texas Police Academy has been preparing future officers for successful careers in law enforcement since the 1940s. Graduates have a long-standing record of a 99-percent passing rate on the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Education (TCLEOSE) licensing examination and are recruited by law enforcement agencies throughout the state.